Hatsukoi no Mori e
by Hukuwa
Summary: When a young Ritsu got lost in the woods, he never expected to find a friend in the forest that would help him, but he must keep his promise of not touching his friend in fear he'll disppear if a human touches him. -Based outta Hotarubi no Mori e;; AU-
1. Chapter 1

**Cry your heart out.**

**Series:** Sekai-ichi Hatsukoi

**Pairing:** Nostalgia

**Genre:** Romance/Supernatural

**Rating:** T.

**Notes:** Recently I watched Hotarubi no Mori e, and when I finished watching the movie, a part of me had died. THE FEELS IT CAUSED. If anyone wants to sob their heart off, I highly recommend it; it's a beautiful story. With that said, I couldn't resist writing a fanfiction, but since I couldn't find a fic about HnMe, I settled for writing a SIH fic.

(Youkai=spirit)

**Disclaimer:** Obviously, I don't own Sekai-ichi or Hotarubi any Mori e (because if I did then it **would not** have ended that way!)

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><p><em>The first time I saw him, I was lost.<em>

The occasional sobbing of a small child was the only thing that broke the silence of the forest. The boy, of no more than six, was sitting on his legs with his face buried in his hands. He had light brown locks and wore brown shorts with an orange shirt, both pieces of cloth dirtied with mud and dirt.

"Someone...help me." He begged, although he knew no one would hear him. Probably he was doomed to stay here forever. "Please, I want to return..." He cried, trying to stop the tears from falling.

"Are you okay, chibi?"

The boy looked up, startled to hear a voice respond to his begging. He looked up front, but found no one. The brown haired boy hiccupped and looked around him- there was no sign of another person being there. "Did I imagine it?" He asked himself.

"Oi, did you hear me, chibi?" The voice asked again. This time the owner of the voice made itself present as he walked towards the small boy. "Are you lost?" The owner of the voice was a young man, probably in his teens, who wore jeans and an open white button shirt, revealing a black t-shirt underneath; everything about the teen looked normal, except for his face. His face was covered by a carnival mask in form of a fox and the only thing you could see was his black hair. The boy's eyes lit up immediately and he got up from his place and started running towards the man. "Finally, I'm saved!" He exclaimed, opening his arms to hug the man.

"Wait, don't!" The masked man exclaimed, moving aside just in time before the boy hugged him. He could just watch behind his mask how the boy tripped and fell to the soft grass.

The boy rubbed his forehead and held in a yell in pain and continued to rub the area where he'd fallen. "Uwah, why did you do that!" His tears had been long forgotten and now they were replaced with an annoyed expression. "Onii-san, why did you move aside?"

The onii-san didn't reply immediately, instead he let out a sigh and gave a step back. "Are you lost?" He repeated. When the child got back on his feet, he decided to ask again. "Oi, tell me, are you or not?" Patience was getting the best of him; he wasn't willing to stay around a boy that didn't answer when he wanted to help. He snapped back into reality as the boy was approaching him again, ready to hug him again. "No!" He jumped aside and the boy crashed into a tree this time. "...idiot."

The boy blinked in pain, rubbing the swollen area that was most likely to leave a bruise. "Why do you move aside!"

"Because you can't touch me." He replied simply, bending to grab a stick on the ground. "Are you lost? I'll take you outside the forest." The boy looked at him before stretching his hand to touch. "No, don't touch me."

"Why?" The boy demanded with a playful glare on face. Once again, he ran towards the taller, just to have the same result as the other two times. "You're odd, onii-san." By now, he had resigned into achieving touching the man, so he just sat down on the grass.

The elder remained in silence for a few seconds before responding, "If you touch me I'll disappear." The boy looked perplexed and could only tilt his head to the side before asking what he meant. "If you touch me I'll be erased from here- I'll stop existing." The black haired teen raised his hand and looked at it.

"Are you a youkai?" The boy asked with his eyes wide open. If the onii-san was really a youkai then it meant they really existed and _**he**_ was seeing one! "So cool, so you are real!"

The youkai remained silent and just turned to see the boy. He sat down on the grass, legs crossed and just looked at the sky. "I am not a youkai, but neither am I human." No other word by spoken by both of them; the rustling leaves were the only thing that made noise. "Do you want to get out of here?"

"You're not going to eat me, youkai-san?" The boy asked with his eyes wide open.

The black haired got up and extended his arm, holding the stick. "..." He sighed. "I already told you, I'm not a youkai, so I'm not going to eat you." The boy got up and took the other end of the stick. "Don't be an idiot and grab the stick until you're outside of the forest."

The boy nodded and followed the youkai as he led the way along the forest, passing by many trees that all looked the same for the boy. After ten minutes or so they reached the stone stairs, and the boy thought he was going to be left alone at this point, thus was surprised when the youkai continued leading the way until the very start of the forest. "Hey, why do you use a mask? Are you a thousand-face youkai? Because I read in a book that those youkai eat people."

The teen grabbed another stick before hitting the boy on the forehead with it. "I've said it a thousand times; I'm not going to eat you." The boy held in a whimper of pain and stuck out his tongue to the youkai. "I'm not a thousand-face youkai, I use the mask to look like a youkai." He added in a solemn tone.

_..._

"You'll go alone from now on." The youkai said, sitting down on the stairs. "I cannot go beyond this point. If you continue walking down the road you'll reach your house. Don't come again to the forest or you'll get lost and I might not help you."

The boy looked down the road and smiled with relief and happiness when he saw his house. "Thank you for not eating me and taking me home, youkai-san!" He bowed down in thanks before adding. "What's your name? I'm Ono-...Oda Ritsu."

No reply.

The wind blew; giving running chills down Ritsu's spine as he finally looked at the masked man. His eyes were hidden by the huge black holes of the mask and the mouth was painted but it didn't mean it didn't scare the six-year-old. "I-I'll come tomorrow to bring a thank you present for you, youkai-san!" He stammered quickly and turned around before starting to run.

_"It's Takano."_

Ritsu stopped on his tracks and turned around but 'Takano' was nowhere to be seen.

After getting home Ritsu had been scolded for the whole evening and warned not the return to the forest because he could get lost. He'd asked if there were any youkai there but his uncle had quickly told he'd seen non in all the time he lived there, thus, there were no youkai.

"I'll go again tomorrow." Ritsu whispered to himself before falling asleep that night.

_From that moment on, I started looking forward to the summer._

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><p><strong>:D So what do you think~? It was going to be a One-Shot but then I realized it was going to be HUGE if it were only a One-Shot, so I decided to make it multi-chapter.<strong>

**You don't need to watch the movie to understand what's going on, but WATCH IT TO SOB YOUR HEART OUT.**

**Read & Review!**


	2. Chapter 2

**Thank you all for your kind reviews~! (: I really hope you enjoy this chapter, and please tell me what you think!**

**(Ritsu is still 6 on this chapter, btw. And since this isn't shota, then there isn't any yaoi yet. x'D)**

**Also, making Takano IC while trying to make him maintain some traits of Gin is fucking hard ;;**

**Disclaimer: I only own my imagination, a copy of SIH's season 1 & 2, and a virtual copy of Hotarubi no Mori e. Everything else belongs to Nakamura Shungiku-sensei and Midorikawa Yuki-sensei.**

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><p><em>I still came the next day to see him.<em>

"..."

"..."

Green eyes stared at black mask wholes for a whole minute before either of them moved.

"So you came by." Takano replied, getting up from the stone steps of the forest's entrance. "I told you not to."

Ritsu nodded and raised the plastic bag in his hands. "I came to give you something as thank you for yesterday, you-...Takano-san." Ritsu looked into the bag and got out what seemed a popsicle. "You can eat human food right? I read that in a book." He added.

Takano looked down at Ritsu before stepping down and taking the popsicle. "Yes." He replied simply and undid the wrapper. He raised the mask just above the nose and opened his mouth to inherit the sweet treat when he sensed a stong look. "...?" He looked down and saw the infant looking at him with great awe, as if expecting something to happen. "What are you staring at?"

Ritsu's eyes maintained glued to Takano and he gaped his mouth in amazement as the youkai took a bite of the popsicle. "Oooh..." His hands became fists and he maintained them near his chest with a radiant smile. "I can't really believe you can eat human food! And you're taking off your mask!"

The black haired raised an eyebrow, but you couldn't see it since his face was covered by the mask. He sighed and threw the wrapper playfully at the boy. "Of course, how else would I eat it, Oda?"

"Oda?" Ritsu repeated and blinked a few times before remembering what he'd told Takano yesterday. "Ooooh..." He remembered now; he'd lied about his name because his parents had told him not to give out his name to strangers. "Yeah..." Preferring to remain quiet than explaining to Takano what his real name was, he opened his own candy and started eating it.

"You want to go somewhere else?" Takano asked as he pointed to the forest. "Don't worry, I'll guide you again when you have to leave." He added.

Ritsu thought for it a send before nodding. He climbed up the stone steps and followed Takano close behind as they entered the forest. "Hey, do you like books? I brought one with me."

Maybe this was going to be a long day, Takano thought.

As the two made their way into the forest Ritsu couldn't help but feel attracted to Takano...well, actually his mask. He just wanted to touch it and examine it, but he had to keep his promise of not touching the man. "..." He glared at his unreachable trophy; it wasn't like he could just as Takano to lend it to him. He gasped silently. What if he had three eyes at was w he hiding his face? Or what if he had no eyes at all? "Nee, Takano-san, tell me about you."

Takano kept walking, but replied simply, "There's nothing about me." He shrugged. Then he continued walking, leading the way along the forest. Occasionally, he turned around to see if Ritsu was still following him. "Oda," He stopped walking and Raised a tree branch with his arm so Ritsu could pass, "be careful I cannot help you if you fall." Ritsu nodded silently and bend down to avoid another branch. "Can you tell me about you, Oda?"

Ritsu's eyes looked up at him, surprised. After what seemed minutes of the boy staring at the youkai, he finally replied an exited "Yes!". "My name's Ritsu and I'm 6 years old. I live in Tokyo but I come here for vacation, and I like reading." He started introducing himself, smiling at Takano. "I like to stay at the library in school breaks to read books and my dad publishes books!"

Obviously, Takano thought as he continued walking, this kid liked books. It was okay, he liked them too. If he could remember correctly, some human kids had left a book in the forest once and after that he'd started reading it. "You brought one, right?" Ritsu looked at him and nodded, taking out of the plastic bag a red book. "Can you read it to me?"

Ritsu's eyes illuminated. "Yes!"

"Takano..."

The two stopped walking, taken aback by the hoarse voice that had spoken.

"Little boy, what are you doing with Takano?"

Ritsu looked around but there was no one around. He moved closer to Takano, careful not to touch him. "Where...?" He tried to find the owner of the voice but he saw no one.

"It's okay," Takano whispered.

From a couple meter away a black mist started to flow and approached Ritsu and Takano slowly, gaining form of a fox with two tails as it did so. The fox had grey sharp eyes and gracefully walked over to where the two were, jumping to a tall tree branch to look at the two from above. "What are you doing with a human? You know what will happen if you are touched by them, _Masamune._" The fox had now gained human form and it had turned into a tall man with black hair and serious expression. Jumping down the tree he gave a step forward in Ritsu's direction, scaring the boy. "Masamune, I think you should just leave the boy here."

Takano didn't lower his arm in favor of protecting Ritsu. "There's no need, _**Yokozawa**_." Takano made emphasis in the name. "He knows he can't touch me."

Yokozawa's cold glare stared at Ritsu before returning to look at the other black haired. "Masamune, I cannot trust you with that decision; it's for your own good, hand him over."

"No." Takano replied and although he was wearing a mask you could sense he was glaring at the other youkai. "I can take care of myself, Yokozawa."

The bigger man sneered. "I cannot see you taking care of such a small thing, "he paused taking the chance to show his sharp teeth to Ritsu. "Maybe you should hand him over so I can eat him." He suggested, crossing his arms.

Ritsu let out a yelp of fear and hid further back Takano, careful not to touch him.

Takano tch'ed and gave a step forward. "Yokozawa, I really think you should go and leave us alone now. He's not an idiot and he knows he shouldn't touch me, _**now leave**_." The black haired stated in a dead serious tone.

Yokozawa silently gulped at the tone Takano was using-specially to defend some human child that was probably going to leave and never come back!- but none the less sighed, closing his eyes and nodded slightly. "I get it. Anyways, I have to leave now and find someone. Good-bye." He turned around and quickly transformed back into the two-tailed fox. "Boy," He added and turned his head to observe Ritsu, "don't touch Masamune or you'll pay."

After that he jumped into a tall bark and left, disappearing as quickly as he had appeared.

"...Takano-san." Ritsu broke the awful silence and glanced up to the taller one. "I...am I being a bother?"

The black haired finally lowered his arm and placed his hands inside his pants' pocket. "No, that Yokozawa is just being over-protective." He replied before continuing walking. "Wanna follow? We're almost there."

Ritsu bit his lips, pushing the book closer to his chest. "What that youkai said...I won't try and touch you anymore, Takano-san." Ritsu declared with a determined look. He was going to keep his promise, he definitely was.

"...It's okay." Takano shrugged. "Don't pay much attention to Yokozawa; he still thinks I need supervision."

The brunette nodded and started following the youkai, who was already a couple steps ahead. "Can I ask why did he call you 'Masamune'?"

"...because that's also my name." Takano replied, removing another branch from the way and moving aside. "Here we are,"

All questions Ritsu might've had were forgotten in favor of staring at the enchanting clear they had reached. The grass was a lively green and it swayed with grace as the wind blew. Some flowers danced to the wind, showing their varied colors to match the clear sly above them.

"It's beautiful..." Ritsu said in awe, walking forward until reaching the middle. "I've never seen something like this."

"I take that you like it." Takano chuckled, walking besides Ritsu. "Sometimes I come to this place to clear my mind." He admitted looking at the boy.

"It's so cool!" Ritsu exclaimed excitedly, hugging the book. "Nee, can I read you the book here? It would totally be awesome!" He begged grinning excitedly.

"Please do so." The black haired youkai responded in a clam tone and sat down on the grass, crossing his legs. Ritsu sat down in front of him and opened the book, starting to read with emphasis in every word he spoke. "Once upon a time, in a far-away land, an old kind ruled the country..."

It was getting late again, when Ritsu was returning home. He was smiling widely on the inside though on the outside there was only a thin smile on his lips. Time had flown when he was by Takano-san's side; not only had he read the book, but then Takano-san had told him another story (one he had read once or something like that). When the boy had noticed, sun was falling again, so the youkai had taken him outside the forest again.

"Nee, can I come over again tomorrow?" Ritsu had asked with an innocent look on his face- that always worked.

"If you promise to bring another book." Takano had replied, resting his head against the forest's stone entrance. "Oda, bring a longer one."

Ritsu nodded. "Yes, I will!"

Now, as he marched inside his house, the only thing on his mind was which book he could bring.

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><p>"And then, the princess leaned down and kissed the ugly frog. Immediately, the ugly frog turned into a handsome prince and-" Ritsu stopped reading, closed the book and remained silent. Besides him, Takano seemed to be peacefully asleep. He frowned. <em>'If you were going to sleep then you should've told me, baka.'<em> Quietly he left to book aside and stared at his friend. It had already been a month since he'd encountered him, and the boy had been coming everyday to meet him. Usually they only talked or read books, but nothing else.

Still the boy couldn't help but wonder what was behind the mask. The only time he'd seen Takano's face was when he was eating the popsicle, and he hadn't even seen his nose. Knowing he wasn't going to get a reply, he asked, "Is it okay if I touch your mask? I want to see your face." He bit his lip, holding his breath. Maybe he shouldn't even try it, but he wanted to see if he had a face. Ritsu felt his heart beat as he stretched out his hands to lift the mask. "..." He lifted it gently enough so that his fingers wouldn't touch the skin and gasped once he was able to see the face.

Takano's face was just like his, but his skin was paler and it made contrast with his black hair. His eyes were closed, but his factions were that of a young teenager around age seventeen. Even at his young age, Ritsu had to admit that Takano was good-looking.

The closed eyes opened and brown orbs looked at Ritsu.

"Eeek!" Ritsu slammed the mask back or Takano's face, who groaned in pain and rolled away. He backed, scared that Takano had suddenly opened his eyes. "You were faking to be asleep?" He cried, angry at the taller man. "Why, baka?"

"I thought you had finished reading!" The youkai responded, still wincing in pain. Damn it, Ritsu had slammed his mask with alot of force! "God damn it, Oda!" He sat back again, glaring at the boy.

Ritsu pouted, still glaring. "I have every right to be angry!" He replied back, pointing at Takano.

After a minute of being angry of being upset at each other, they finally glanced back at each other.

"Either way, why did you take off my mask?"

"I wanted to see if you had a face."

"I told you I had a face." Takano recalled.

"I hadn't seen it." Ritsu replied.

"Well, anyway, are you going to continue reading the book?" Takano lay back again, turning to look at Ritsu. "I was hearing it, you know?"

"...Okay." Ritsu grabbed the book again and proceed to read it out loud. "The prince had transformed into a young prince because of the kiss of first love."

_After meeting him, I never wanted the summer to end._

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><p><strong>Spring Break is here~! That means I can write more now~<strong>

**Next chapter will have a time-skip and small frustrated teenage feels. I hope to be able to make the other Sekai-ichi characters appear, so maybe I'll ahve to invent something to make them all appear  
><strong>

**Read and Review!**

**Thank you in advance!**


	3. Chapter 3

**I'm really glad you like it! (: Thank you for your reviews so much!**

**Now we have a small time-skip, and I decided to change some things in order to add the other characters (ie. things that don't happen in the movie/manga)**

**Side pairings are the established once ~plz~**

**OHGAWSH. I was going to update before now but a storm hit my house and the power went off ~third world problems plz~ and just half the file got saved, so I had to write it again.**

**I own nothing. Not even the computer where I'm writing the fic.**

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><p>"Ritsu." Takano called, searching around the forest for his friend. It had been the boy's brilliant idea to play hide-n-seek, and well, maybe Ritsu had gotten lost (again). "Oda." He tried, looking around the small bushes. "Oda!" Great, Ritsu had gotten lost. He exhaled. "I swear, if-"<p>

"BWAH!"

Ritsu fell from the tree in front of Takano, hanging by his feet to prevent from falling. He grinned in victory, looking at Takano and he just _knew _he had surprised the spirit. "Did I scare you?" He asked, grinning as he tried to return to sit on the branch. "I know I did, you even backed away." He smiled triumphantly.

"Not really," Takano responded as if it were obvious. "A small brat like you could not scare me. If you have forgotten, I live in the forest, so I could sense you."

Ritsu blinked and the huffed, crossing his arms. "Well, you could've at least faked being surprised." The boy crossed his arms, shifting his sight. "Or you could've let me take off your mask."

"_**Why?**_" Takano exhaled and rose and eyebrow. "You already saw it when you kindly removed it."

Ritsu rose and eyebrow rolled his eyes. "Well, I want to see it again."

"_**Why?**_" Takano asked dryly, turning around and giving a step away. "C'mon, we have to get going."

Ritsu shrugged, "I'll move if you let me see your face."

_Crack!_

The only thing Ritsu could see as he fell from the branch that had just snapped was Takano stretching his arms to catch him.

"Oda!" He exclaimed almost ready to catch the boy in his arms.

_'No!'_ Ritsu thought, closing his eyes, hoping he would fall to the ground instead of Takano catching him. _'If he touches me, he'll disappear...!' _He didn't want that. He didn't want his friend to disappear.

Takano stopped on the spot; he hadn't even given a step when he remeber what would happen if he saved Ritsu and could only look as the boy fell to the ground. He was grateful he was wearing a mask, for he was wearing a troubled expression now. "Oda, are you okay?" He asked after a minute of silence.

Thankfully, Ritsu was okay and just had a scratch here and there, but he was sobbing._ 'Why is he crying now? He's okay.'_

Ritsu only nodded. "Ta...Takano-s...san," He sobbed, trying to wipe away the flowing tears from his eyes. "Are...are you o...okay?"

"Huh? Me?" Why was Ritsu asking that? He hadn't been the one who fell from a tall tree branch. "Why do you ask? I'm okay?"

Ritsu continued to cry silently and continued to try and clean the tears from his eyes. "Be-...because if you touched me you will di...disappear...!" His green eyes looked at Takano with a hurt expression. "Please..."

Takano kneeled down and looked in his back pocket for something.

"P...please." Ritsu repeated with his mouth trembling and eyes puffy. "Please...Takano-sa...n, please, no matter what, don't touch me..."

The black haired finally found what he was looking for; a small piece of cloth. "Here you go," He extended his arm, removing his mask with the other. "It's okay, _Ritsu._" His lips formed a small comforting smile, looking at the boy in the eyes as if trying to calm him. Inside his heart a great urge to hug the child was born, but the youkai had to repress it for his own good. "I...I get it."

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><p>"Nee, you do remember what I told you last week, right?" Ritsu asked at the end of the month, glancing up at Takano. "About me going back to the city."<p>

Takano glanced back at the boy and nodded. "You won't be returning in all the year, right?" Ritsu nodded. "Well, as long as you return next year then there's no problem." He glanced back at the boy, letting a small smile for on his lips.

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><p>"Just be sure to return before it gets dark, Ritsu!" His aunt yelled as the teen left the house running. "I won't go for you if you get lost!"<p>

"I get it!" The teen replied back as he hurried to the forest entrance.

Now that he was twelve years old, Ritsu was pretty sure he was able to take care of himself; he wasn't six years anymore and alot of things had changed in this time. Still, others remain the same, such as the fact that every summer he went to the forest to see Takano-san. Without realizing it, it had become something he looked up for every summer; Takano and him used to stay all day reading the books Ritsu brought with him or walking around the forest while Takano talked about the forest. A small smile was drawn on his face as Ritsu thought about sharing all the trivial things that had happened during the year with Takano.

The caramel haired skipped the stone steps as quickly as he could, grinning in his mind as the forest entrance came to view. He raised an eyebrow, though, as he got closer and found Takano sleeping peacefully with a magazine covering his mask. "..." _'Really? He's sleeping at the very entrance of the forest?' _Somewhere inside his childish nature he thought of playing a joke to the youkai. "Takano-san," He called, getting no response. "Takano-san," He tried again, still getting no response. He stretched his hands slowly and tried to lift the mask, being extremely careful not to touch the blackhaired's face.

"Do something and I swear I'll leave you alone in the god damned forest."

Ritsu jumped back, eyes wide open as he tried to keep his expression as calm as possible. "You were awake?" He yelled, pointing at the older. "Then why didn't you reply?"

With all the patience in the world, Takano got up, removing the magazine from his face. "I didn't feel like replying to you." He replied simply looking at the boy. "Oh? Is it possible you could've grown on this past year? You seem taller." Takano spoke casually.

"Don't try and change the topic!"

The black haired smirked, removing his mask. "Here, you wanted to see my face, right? I bet it was because you had forgotten it."

Ritsu let out and exasperated sigh, rolling his eyes. "No, I didn't forget your face." He quickly glanced at his friend and stared blankly at him. "I just wanted to...play a joke on you." He admitted.

The taller male chuckled loudly, putting his mask back on. "Ah Oda, you make me laugh." Takano stared back at Ritsu, before stepping into the forest. "You coming?"

Ritsu nodded, following Takano ad he let another thin smile slip onto his lips.

"You know, I'm starting middle school this year." The brunette commented as he stared at the blue sky. Besides him, Takano hummed in agreement. "It's going to be a hard year but I'm sure I will be able to pass it." He paused, to add with excitement. "Want me to show you my uniform?"

Takano turned to look at him and lowered his gaze, as if examining the boy, before looking back at Ritsu's eyes. "You're wearing a different uniform from now on?" He asked, rising from his sitting position. "I remember the year you came to show me your uniform and how you danced all around."

Ritsu blushed, trying to maintain his cool. "That...that was long time ago." Maybe the idea did seem as something stupid, or something a girl would do..."Well, if you don't want me to show it to you, then forget I even asked!"

In response, the youkai laughed, shaking his head. "I never said that I didn't want to see it." He explained, inching closer to Ritsu.

"Ah..." Once again, a small blush invaded Ritsu's cheeks.

Their talk was interrupted however, as a small sound of leaves rustling sounded. Ritsu looked up from the book he was reading and glanced at Takano._ 'Maybe it's just an animal,' _Deep inside he knew that probably, it wasn't an animal. The bush was merely a few meters away from the two of them and it continued to rustle.

Takano also glanced up from the book and after a few seconds of remaining in silence, he just sighed.

"Is it that Yokozawa?" Ritsu whispered, eyes fixed on where a small bush moved. He hadn't encountered the other youkai that much ever since that day, but when they did, Yokozawa was always made harsh remarks on the boy.

The black haired shrugged. "No; it's someone else." Ritsu raised an eyebrow. "Just come out already," He called loudly.

...

"Idiot, just stop it!"

"Sorry, Kisa-san!"

Ritsu raised an eyebrow, closing the book on his hands. "Two...?"

From the bush, two figures raise; one tall blonde and a short black haired. The taller one looked pretty much human...except for lamb horns and ears growing up from the side of his head. The other, looked normal too and there wasn't anything that indicated him not being human. Although what caught Ritsu's attention was the fact that the shorter one was underneath the taller one.

Takano sighed. "I'm not going to ask, Kisa." He just said, running his hand through his hair.

'Kisa' faced where the youkai and human were and blushed madly. "I...I..." He shuttered. "It's _**his**_ fault, okay?"

The taller one got off Kisa and smiled, "Sorry, Kisa-san." He apologized kindly, giving the black haired a warm smile. "Ah, but look, there's Takano-san and that human boy!" Even his ears moved.

Ritsu raised an eyebrow; was he well known in the forest? "Uhm..." He glanced at Takano who had a not amused expression on his face.

"Can we meet him, Takano-san?"

Ritsu glanced back at the two strangers. "Hi...?" He wondered if the other guy was also a human until he saw a tail poke out from his behind. "Eh?" On instinct, he pointed at the tail, too shocked to speak.

Kisa looked at where Ritsu was pointed and just mouthed an 'oh'.

The sheep guy waved at the twelve-year-old and gave a slight bow before shaking their hands together. "Hi, I'm Yukina, nice to meet you." He smiled and Ritsu swore he saw sparkles around the youkai.

"Ono-Oda Ritsu, nice to meet you too...?" Ritsu spoke shaking hands with the handsome youkai. _'Wait, did I just think he was handsome? He's a youkai and a male youkai! What is wrong with you, Ritsu?'_

"So all the rumors are true?" Kisa asked sitting down besides Takano. "You really did befriend a human. Honestly, when Yokozawa told us, we didn't believe it."

Yukina nodded in agreement to Kisa's words and just headed to sit besides the black haired. "I can't believe we hadn't met him until now, though. Have you been hiding him?"

Takano nodded. "He just comes over in the summer, and honestly, I try to keep him away from Ritsu."

Kisa sighed, "Well, what do you expect? He's still..._**like that.**_" The youkai glanced at Ritsu before adding. "Well, Rit-chan, I hope you do realize you cannot touch Takano here, or-"

Ritsu cut in, looking down. "Or he'll disappear." He nodded slowly, not gazing up. "I know, every year I remember that because I don't want my friend to disappear." Inside his chest, his heart started to hurt just at the mere thought of Takano disappearing. "I know; and I won't touch him."

The masked youkai turned to look at the boy before just adding, "He knows, so don't worry so much. He's not an idiot and we've been doing fine these six years."

The blonde raised an eyebrow. "Six years? Wow, that's more than what Kisa-san and I have been to-" Kisa placed his hand over the lamb youkai before he finished the sentence.

"Ahaha, he's...he's saying we've known each other for not as much time as you two have known each other."

Takano raised an eyebrow and let out a 'humph', smirking, while Ritsu only stared in confusion at the pair of youkai.

_'It's good to see there are friendlier youkai.' _The boy exhaled; quietly thanking they had decided to stop talking about how humans couldn't touch Takano. He already knew it, and he kept it in mind every time they saw each other.

Later that day, when Ritsu had to return to his house, Takano walked by his side all the way. The other two youkai had stayed behind, and Ritsu was perfectly okay with that. Both Yukina and Kisa seemed nice but something about them still bugged the boy. _'Why were the two behind a bush?' _His green orbs looked at Takano, but also questions he might had were forgotten as he stared at Takano. His heart beat quickly, so he just tried to remain calm. Just everything about the older made Ritsu want to be more by his side- his complexion, his hair, his mannerisms, but his face was the one thing made his heart stop for a second. _'I seem like one of those shojo manga protagonists like in the manga An-chan lent me.'_

He was so distracted in his thoughts that if it hadn't been for Takano's voice, he would have left the forest without waving goodbye.

"Oda,"

Ritsu snapped out of his thoughts and looked around, "Yes?" Oh, so he was already at the forest limit..."Oh, uhm...thank you again, Takano-san." He smiled, pressing the book closer to him chest. "I'll see you again tomorrow."

Takano nodded, leaning against the stone pillar of the forest's entrance. "Ritsu," He said, raising his mask just enough for his mouth to be seen. "It was nice having you again. Tomorrow when you come, wear the uniform; I want to see you wearing it."

Ritsu only managed to nod quickly before running off, not knowing if he was getting flushed or just shy.

_I started wondering what I was feeling and why I was acting like that whenever I saw him._

* * *

><p><strong>When I wrote about Yukina I was thinking of him as the love product of ShonenT and Rumdarjun...-oh god, that sounds wrong.<strong>

**Ahem, leaving _that_ aside, I hope you liked this chapter, and I'll try to update as soon as I can!**

**Steve the Star- I don't know! orz Because if I change the ending I would feel...odd but leaving it as it originally makes me cry /will think of something/**

**Thank you for reading and please review~!**


	4. Chapter 4

**So yeah; I re-wrote chapter four after realizing how asfghhorribleh it was written(?). Hopefully, this will be better.**

**Special guest is Araki Hisashi which is owned (by Yuu and) by TheBlackFlamingo101.**

**Disclaimer: Do not own a thing. Sekai-ichi Hatsukoi is owned by Nakamura Shungiku, Hotarubi no Mori e is owned by Midorikawa Yuki, etc, etc. I'm just a pervert fangirl.**

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><p>"...I don't see why you insist on me wearing the uniform."<p>

"You insisted first." Takano reminded casually, remaining on his spot. "Besides if you brought it I think it was because you wanted me to see it."

Ritsu gawked, biting his lower lip as he tried to glare at the black haired. "Of course not! It was because...I wanted my family to see it." Okay, so maybe it wasn't the truth, but it wasn't exactly a lie, either. "Anyways, why did you want to see me wearing it? It's just a uniform."

Takano chuckled. "You look nice on it." He was sure Ritsu could just sense his smile. "Although I had seen you wearing the school clothes before this one looks different on you."

"Different?" The boy looked at himself. It was just a simple, normal, black uniform; nothing out of the ordinary. "How?"

"You have grown and you're no longer a child, so it fits differently." The youkai just wanted to say something else but it was better if he kept quiet. "So, you're entering middle school this year?"

Ritsu nodded. "Hey, I have some other books you might like...want me to bring them tomorrow?" Maybe if he gave the books to Takano he could spend more time with him. His family was starting to wonder what was so interesting about the forest and Ritsu had lied and said he went to read. He was sure that if he told them that he had befriended a spirit they would think he was crazy.

The things he had to do to see his friend. Sometimes he wondered if he had gone crazy; he'd never believed in spirits, but now he had become friends with one and they were becoming almost inseparable when they got to see each other. It was nice, though, he had to admit; Takano and he could be together for a long time and it could still feel like it wasn't enough.

"This summer ended faster than what I expected." Ritsu commented out of the blue on the last week of that summer vacation. "I wish I had more time to be here." He smiled before glancing up at the blue sky. "It's really great here, you know? I envy you; it must be great living here."

Takano's eyes glanced at Ritsu before replying, "It's not that great. I'm not able to leave the place and there's no one like me here." He explained. "Sometimes I feel that because I'm different from them they're just giving me pity." He was different from them, _he_ was a special case. He wasn't like them and he knew that he couldn't become like them ever.

Hn, funny. It had been years since he had thought about his life in the forest.

'...' He sighed, shaking his head. "No, forget what I just said; it's stupid to think like that." A part of him didn't want Ritsu to meet him in that way, but other part of him just begged to receive the attention that he had been deprived of for so long. He should be grateful for being able to be alive, but...was he really as alive as many thought he was?

"Everything okay?" Ritsu interrupted his thoughts, snapping him back to reality. "Takano-san, you just went silent."

The spirit shook his head. "No, nothing's wrong." He brushed off his worries. For some reason he got relaxed when he saw Ritsu's face- it made him feel special because someone cared about him so much. "Oi, Oda, you're going back in two days, right?"

"Yes, why?"

_'I just don't want you to go so quickly; I'd like to keep you all by myself.'_ He wanted to say that; he wanted someone by his side, but instead, Takano just shrugged and said, "I'd like to show you around more."

Ritsu snorted. "Please, I already know all the forest. I even know your favorite spots, Takano-san.""Well, what else can I do? You come here every day and you know I'm not capable of going out of the forest. When you were younger you were easier to entertain." The black haired remarked. "I had to hit you with a stick so you would understand that you could not touch me." He added and grinned when Ritsu's cheek's rose in color.

"I...I was small back there!" He responded, getting up and he pointed at his friend. "And you weren't too nice when we met!"

"You weren't either."

Ritsu gave Takano a playful and annoyed look before crossing his arms. "You know, sometimes I wish I could stay here all year. That way I wouldn't have to leave you here and we could spend all the year together."

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><p><em>'I want to see him.' <em>Ritsu tried to concentrate on the teacher's words, but his mind insisted on bringing an image of Takano to his head. _'I want to see him right now...' _He exhaled, tapping the pencil on his hand on the school desk. His chest hurt, but it wasn't painful to breathe.

He closed his eyes, and bit his lower lip. Why was he feeling so frustrated? He could go and see Takano every summer, so why was he getting all anxious? Why could he not pry Takano's face off his mind? It was asphyxiating and without Takano by his side, he felt a bit slowly. _'Stop, don't think like a twelve-year-old girl with a crush! You're fourteen now!'_

For the last two years he had been trying to keep calm whenever he met with Takano. His heart started racing and he'd get nervous and start mumbling. If he didn't know himself any better he would've sworn he was acting like a love-struck girl.

"Onodera, it's time to go," A classmate called, pointing at the room's entrance. "Oh, do you have to stay today?"

Ritsu nodded. "Yeah, I have to clean the class room." It was a lie; he just didn't feel like leaving yet. Maybe he could stay at the library and read something. Maybe he'd even find some books that he could show to Takano.

Just at the thought, his heart clenched. When he saw him he felt happy. He couldn't really explain it, but it felt nice whenever they talked...Ritsu had come to love the time they spent together more than the talks with other people. Takano seemed to always listen what Ritsu had to say, he was always by his side.

"Onodera, you're blushing."

He snapped back to reality and blinked a couple times before gazing up. Another classmate was looking at him with an amused look. "Oh, I...sorry," He grinned nervously. Seriously, he had been blushing? "I need to get...going to the duty."

"What, were you thinking of your special someone?"

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><p>"An-chan is coming with us next summer, Ritsu." His mother told him at dinner.<p>

The boy looked up from his plate and titled his head to his side. "To where?"

His mother gave him a look that just said 'aren't you distracted recently? I've already told you!'. She sighed. "Since you two are fourteen now her parents and us guessed you must start spending more time together."

"..." Ritsu raised an eyebrow. "Wha-" He stopped his words as realization quickly drew to him.

The engagement.

But, he thought that the engagement had been called off long time ago. "...I thought the engagement was off." It had been four years ago since he had last seen the girl. Kouhinata An was his childhood friend, but nothing more; he had told his parents that and back then they had heard him, but this...? "I don't want to marry her, mom." Usually his father would try to reason with his mother but this time Ritsu's father was working late.

Her mother dropped the fork, and gave her son a look that demanded absolute obedience. "Why not? She's a charming girl who would make you happy! It's not some stranger; you two know each other and get along just fine!"

"..." The teen bit his lower lip and slid down his chair. "I just...don't see her as more than a friend." He admitted.

His mother sighed, rubbing her temples. "Ritsu, please. She's a wonderful girl." Ritsu glanced down. "Or have you perhaps met other girl?" When silence continued, she just let out an exasperated sigh, crossing her arms. "I don't care, but I demand you to stop seeing her because you are going to marry An-chan."

A knot formed in his throat. He was unable to tell his mother that the engagement was beyond stupid because nobody did that in modern times, that he wanted to be left alone, that An-chan was just a friend and that he didn't feel anything for her. "...I'll go to my room, excuse me." He rose from his seat and walked away towards the stairs.

He didn't feel anything for An-chan, and yet, somehow he was familiar with the feeling of loving someone.

...

"Ah, so you really came, An-chan."

The girl smiled gently, grinning. "I'm glad we're able to spend time together, Rit-chan." She glanced to the other side, amazed by the fields. "You're lucky to be able to here every summer; it's beautiful out here..."

"Well, I've been coming here since I've got memory, but yeah, it's nice out here. There are no big sounds, or drama." He leaned against the back seat, lolling his head to the back. Despite how much he tried to appear as a gentleman for An, there was a thing in the back of his head that assured him that this vacation was going to be a disaster. How was he supposed to meet Takano now? "It was not troublesome, right? I mean, you coming this summer with us, I'm sure you had plans."

She shrugged, smiling politely, "No, it's okay, as long as I can spend time with you."

Ritsu just smiled and excused himself, saying he was going to take a nap to rest. An nodded and returned to watch the landscape.

Onodera bit his lower lip. He was sure he didn't want this. He just wanted to spend as much time as he could with Takano. A faint blush started to show on his cheeks. So maybe he felt something for Takano, although he wasn't sure what it was.

The first thing that Ritsu did when he got was jump out of the car and run to the forest with a lame excuse of wanting to see if the forest was safe enough to show to An-chan. He ran as quickly as his legs would let him, knowing perfectly well where to go. Knowing the youkai, Takano was probably resting by a tree resting.

"Takano-san!" He called out loud, looking around. Ritsu was near the valley, so Takano had to be near. "Takano-san!"

A voice behind him responded in an annoyed tone, "What are you doing screaming like that?"

Ritsu let out a relieved smile, exhaling. "Ah, you're here..." He let out a relieved smile. "I'm glad you're here." He turned around, waving as he saw Takano sitting on a rock.

Takano arched an eyebrow. "Something wrong?"

"Well...remember how I said I was the only one who came with my family?" Takano nodded. "Ah, my mom invited this girl to come with us...and...I...she's..." He tried to find appropriate words. "You see, she insists I be with her all the time, so-"

"That girl's your fiancé?" Takano interrupted, raising his mask. His expression laid a serious tone on the conversation and Ritsu only managed to nod, looking aside. "Well, there's nothing I can do to stop you from not coming here..."

The brunette shook his head. "No, I want to come here with you," He said trying to explain his situation… "She's just a friend, but my mom insists on calling her my fiancé!"

Takano's brown eyes flashed quick surprise before shrugging. "Even if you say that, you won't be able to come as much, right?"

"Then I'll come on the night, if I have to." Ritsu deadpanned.

"It's not necessary."

The boy rose and eyebrow. "I will do it if it's necessary." He repeated. "I don't want to waste all my summer over there when I can be here."

Takano chuckled. "Do you really want to be here instead of over there?"

The brunette shrugged, shifting his sight to the ground. "...well, kinda..."

Before Takano could even say something else, another voice called out loud Ritsu's name.

"Ritsu!" It repeated, getting closer to where both men were. "Rit-chan, are you over here?"

It was An's voice. Ritsu gasped and whitened a bit. "It's An-chan!" He turned to face Takano. "Can she see you? I mean- you're visible to her, right?"

"I am not a ghost." Takano cut in, crossing his arms. "But I don't want to meet her." He admitted.

Ritsu huffed, looking at the taller one, "I'll come as soon as I can." He spoke with a serious tone before glancing to where An's voice was coming from. "I'm going, An-chan!" He cried out loud. With a last glance to Takano, he hurried off to meet his friend.

* * *

><p>The word exasperated didn't even begin to describe how he was feeling.<p>

He felt annoyed.

He felt trapped.

He...

…He was forced to stay by An's side 24/7. Now, being by An's side wasn't bad, Ritsu enjoyed her presence and their talks, but his mother insisted them to always be together. To make things worse, it had been two weeks since he had been able to go to the forest. At least he wasn't the only one who seemed out of patience to his mother's antics- An was starting to get tired of them too. She liked being around Ritsu, and she loved him, but being by his side all the time wasn't very enthralling.

"Do you think we can walk around town today?" An asked, snapping Ritsu out of his thoughts. The day was hot, and all the two teens had to refresh themselves was a small fan. "Or maybe we could to a stream."

"You want to go into the forest?" Ritsu responded with a surprised tone. An-chan had never mentioned the idea before.

"If it's possible, I'd love to!" The girl grinned, clapping her hands together. "You know around the place, don't you, Ritchan?" Ritsu gave a semi-nod in response. "Then we can go to the forest and refresh near a stream, right?"

"...I...I guess we can do that."

And so the two teens, headed off to the forest- one thinking of the other and the other thinking that he's finally be able to see the youkai again.

Half way through, An stopped walking, gasping in realization. "I forgot something Oh, Rit-chan, can I return really quickly to your house? I promise I won't take long!" She begged, clasping her hands together. "Please?"

The brunette shrugged. "Sure, I'll wait here, okay?" He offered, taking this as perfect excuse to meet Takano. "If you get lost, give me a shout."

An giggled and nodded, turning to the opposite direction and ran towards the house.

Once he was sure he was alone, Ritsu grinned from ear to ear. "Finally, I'm alone!" He exhaled. He looked at his surroundings. He wasn't that far from where Takano usually was; probably he'd have fifteen minutes to himself.

Fifteen long minutes.

"Beeeeeeh~"

Ritsu titled his head. Had he just heard a sheep? The teen glanced down and found a small sheep with blonde curls staring at him.

"What are you doing here?" He asked the sheep, kneeling to its level. Ritsu's green orbs fixed on how soft and silky the curls looked. "I had never seen a sheep around, are you lost?" He stretched his hand and was about to pat the sheep, when he was cut off by a reply.

"Touch the curls and you die."

"..."

"I mean it."

Wait. Had the...sheep...just...threatened him? He blinked once. Twice. The sheep was giving him a glare. A sheep. "Are you a...youkai?"

The sheep raised an eyebrow. "Oh, I thought you'd get freaked out." It repiled calmly, giving a step back before bursting into a mass of white smoke.

Ritsu blinked again just to check he wasn't hallucinating. He should've been used to this now! All these years of seeing Takano, Kisa, Yukina, and even Yokozawa, and he still got surprised that there were youkai around?

Once the while smoke had dissipated, the young man with blonde curls, pale skin, and gorgeous blue eyes who had once been a sheep asked, "Wait, could it be that you're Takano-san's kid?"

"...'Takano-san's kid'?" Ritsu repeated, raising an eyebrow. He approached the man, still unsure how it was possible for a sheep to transform. "You know Takano-san?"

"So it's him!" A third voice added suddenly. Hisashi looked up at the tree behind him, giving a small smile. Ritsu just raised an eyebrow, knowing that it was probably another youkai.

"...just...how many youkai are here?"

"Tons." The sheep replied instantly.

A figure jumped down the tree behind to the blonde, landing besides the blonde youkai. In contrast to the sheep, this one had auburn hair and piercing eyes. He also wore a wine-red yukata and wore fox mask to his side. "Hnmm, I thought he was younger."

"It seems he grew."

"Probably."

"Or Takano just lied about the age."

"You really think he could to that?"

"No. Just saying."

"...Uhm," Ritsu scoffed, earing the two youkai's attention. "I'm here, y'know?" He waved slowly. "You could ask _me._"

The masked-fox-man and sheep (as Ritsu had kindly decided to name them) looked at each other before just shrugging their shoulders.

"So you're the kid Takano befriended." The auburn haired said, examining Ritsu from top to bottom.

"Yes, my name's Onodera Ritsu, nice to meet you. May I know your names? Are you Takano-san's friends?"

The smaller one remained silent for a second before tilting his head slightly. "You could say that. My name's Hisashi, I'm a sheep youkai, and this guy's name is Yuu; he's a fox youkai who likes to play around with humans." Yuu waved, smiling from ear to ear.

"Ah, nice to meet you two." Ritsu bowed but then his eyes fixed on Hisashi's blonde locks. "..." They were kinda cute; he had to admit.

"You cannot touch them."

Ritsu blushed; had he been so obvious?

"Ah, don't take it personally~" Yuu chuckled. "He doesn't like anyone staring, or touching, his locks." He explained, patting Hisashi's head.

"...stop it." Hisashi pouted.

"Uhm, sorry to ask this, but..." Ritsu interrupted, "why did you call me 'Takano-san's kid'?" He asked. "He and I are just friends." He added quickly.

Hisashi laughed for a second, "Well, he talked about you alot."

"Plus, Yukina-kun and Kisa-san already met you, so you are kinda well known among the youkai here." Yuu added.

Ritsu's cheeks turned slightly pink. "He talked about me?"

"Well, yeah! He started talking about you more about six years ago, like how he enjoyed having you around and things like that."

"Oh wow..." Ritsu breathed out. He felt his heart beating quicker than usual. "I never knew he-"

"Rit-chaaan~"

The three men's attention was drawn to where the female voice came from.

"It's that girl you came with." Hisashi pointed to the path where the humans had come from. "She came back quite quickly."

"I guess we should go; we don't like seeing lots of humans." Yuu shrugged, grabbing Hisashi's shoulder.

"Don't play a joke on her." Hisashi added, as he walked away alongside Yuu.

His heart was beating quickly, and he was almost sure it had stopped for a fragment of a second. Takano-san talked about him when he wasn't around...his cheeks turned into a deeper shade of pink. Ritsu felt special.

An reached Ritsu's side. "Thank goodness you're still here! I brought a bento so we can eat it by the-Rit-chan?" She asked, leaning closer to her fiancé. "Are you okay?"

Green eyes blinked a couple times before reacting. "Huh? Oh yeah, I'm fine, don't worry." He smiled kindly at her. "Are you ready to go?" The two started walking to their destination again, enrolling into a trivial conversation as they walked.

A part of him told him to forget it, but another one didn't want to ignore the fluttering inside his chest.

_That was when I realized what I felt._

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><p><strong>TLDR Author notes ;;<strong>

**1)GUYS GO ON YOUTUBE AND SEARCH FOR 'GGRKS Sekaiichi' ... or google it (hahaha get it? Google it -ggrks- 8DD -lame-).**

**2)Sorry it took so long to update, but school got in the way and since finals are a week away for me and every single teacher is giving out projects asdfghj...**

**3) I finally figured how to end the story without it being TERRIBLY HEART-BREAKING!**

**4) Hisashi was originally going to be a youkai tied to a rock (reference to 'Always') but I decided to make him a sheep because of his curls c: No relation to Yukina, btw. Yuu is a fox youkai because if just seemed to fit him.**

**Miyuki Meiru- I think you should watch the movie! (: It's really beautiful and, if you want spoilers, you might find out why Ritsu can't touch Takano.**

**You Me and Obession- Cuz Yukina is another type of youkai.**

**Thank you for reading~ (:**


	5. Chapter 5

**Happy Birthday to me. 8|**

**Warnings stay as the same as before; shonen-ai, OOC-ness (puleze it's obvious Takano is OOC-try to get a perfect mix of him and Gin and then talk to me (?) ), etc, etc.**

**I own nothing.**

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><p>He gave a quick look to the left.<p>

He gave a quick look to the right.

Well, there was no reason to hide anymore, it seemed. The teenager sighed with relieve and rose from his hidding place behind a big bush. Now, he was free to go and see Takano, finally! The vacations were almost over but he hadn't really gotten a chance to be Takano-san in all summer; his mother forced An-chan and him to be side by side 24/7, and in all honesty, it was suffocating. Normally, he wouldn't have minded An, truth be told- she was a very good friend and nice girl, but being by her side all summer was just too much. He had forgotten the definition of personal space.

To make things worse, he'd notice An-chan being just as tired as he was, but with his mother's constant watch there was no way out of it for both teens. So now (finally after two weeks!), he could finally sneak away into the forest and see Takano. Ritsu had decided that if he couldn't escape today, he'd escape at night, and although that meant dealing with his mother's anger in the following morning, he would do it. It wasn't fair to be kept away of the person that you liked!

Liked...the simple thought of it seemed odd. He realized it, he liked Takano-san. He felt a different kind of love, no...affection, towards An-chan; and what he felt for Takano was love.

Which was worse than bad.

Because if a relationship between to guys already seemed impossible, just the thought of liking a youkai was insane. Ritsu had told himself thousands of times that he'd lost it, but that couldn't change the fact that he _liked_ Takano. In other words, he was hopelessly in love with something that would never happen. Even if he got enough courage to confess (which would be plain insane), nothing could come out of it! He couldn't touch Takano! He couldn't hug him! He couldn't touch his hand! But he wanted to see him.

"Ritsu?" A delicate voice asked behind the boy.

"Uwaaaahhh!" Immediately, he leapt into air out of fright and he felt his heart leave his chest. "Oh my god!" He cried, still recovering from the shock. He turned around and saw An-chan looking at him with a confussed expression. "Oh my god, An-chan, what the-...why did you do that?"

The girl rolled her eyes before she smiled at Ritsu. "I was just going to go to shop. What are you doing hiding?"

The brunette remained silent for a second, recovering his normal heartbeat, before he replied. "I...I was just looking around." He lied. Perfect, now his plans were screwed.

Her eyes stared at Ritsu for a moment before she shrugged. "...Nee, you've been wanting to go to forest alot recently...are you meeting someone there?" She asked and seeing Ritsu's expression, her eyes widen. "So you are?" Although An had expected this, seeing how Ritsu wasn't denying it brought a new level of shock to her. Was she supposed to be mad now?

...No...An had learnt long ago that Ritsu didn't like her that way. "..." She gave him a weak smile. "Anyways, you should go to the forest before it gets dark. I'll buy you something." The girl waved as she parted from where Ritsu was.

Onodera stared blankly at An and watched as she left. Deciding to ask questions as to what she'd act like that later, he quickly rushed to the forest entrance. His heart was starting to beat quickly, but he had to calm down first. The last thing he wanted was to seem like a love-struck girl in front of Takano.

"Takano-san," He called out loud, looking at his around. "Takano-san!" He called again.

His callings were returned by a deep voice grumbling tiredly from behind a tall bush. "God, what are you doing here?" Takano asked, yawning. "I thought you had forgotten I was here."

Ritsu's green orbs widen notoriously as he took in the fact Takano wasn't wearing his mask. "...I...I could never forget you," Ritsu said as a matter of fact. Immediately, he realized his words, and added, "I mean, of course you're always here so it would be too stupid of me to forget it." Yeah, that seemed normal.

Takano scoffed, smiling for a second before yawning again. "So, how come you're free?"

Ritsu approached the youkai and sat down few steps away from him. "I got free time so I came here." The sixteen-year-old replied casually. "...Uhm, Takano-san, where is your mask?"

Takano's brown eyes shifted downwards for a second. "Oh, that...I don't know where I left it." He replied in a casual tone fixing his gaze on Ritsu. "Why?"

The brunette seemed slightly surprised at such laid back response but quickly got over it. "Well, in all this time I've known you, you've never been without it and well, you look like a human."

Takano smirked, "Really? I seem human?" He asked interested, crossing his legs and leaning forwards the younger boy. "Would you think I'm human if you saw me on the street?" The tone that Takano emitted was one of amusement.

"...I uh...yeah...why?" Why was Takano asking this sort of things in a tone like that?

"Just think of it, any human- even you!- could touch me then and I's disap..."

"Stop!" Ritsu shouted, making Takano's words halt. "Why do you say that?" The teen asked, looking at the black haired in the eyes. "Why would you want someone to touch you...? Why would you want to disappear?" His heart ached at the mere thought to Takano disappearing; it was too heartbreaking. Why was Takano thinking it? "Takano-san,...why-"

The youkai chuckled again, but this time it seemed as a tired chuckle. "I never told you about me, did I?" Ritsu shook his head. "I think it's time for you to do so." Seeing how Ritsu tilted his head to his side made Takano wonder if he should. "...I was born human," He started. "You see there were some legends that some babies were abandoned here at birth as sacrifice for the god of the mountain." He took a long pause, trying to remember more. "I was left here, to die. My parents apparently held no interest in raising a family, so I was just a baby when I was left here. Without any human contact, touch or anything...I was sure to die within hours." He chuckled dryly, as if were some kind of joke, which only concerned Ritsu more. "But then, for some reason, the god of the forest didn't want to kill me, and instead I fed off its energy." He glanced at Ritsu."The other youkai took care of me as I grew; they always looked out for me, especially Yokozawa."

Ritsu gulped and nodded, biting down the wanting to ask why he'd brought Yokozawa into conversation.

"The division between human and youkai is too thin for me; I am neither. That's why, if a human touched me, the energy that keeps me alive would break...and I'd die."

The words hit Ritsu on that instant. Every single one of them made fear invade his mind. "...That's why you never wanted me to touch you?" He asked, but he was unable to look at Takano; if he did his emotions would take over him and he'd feel tempted to hug the black haired.

"Even this name was given by the youkai of the forest; the name my parents gave...I cannot remember it."

Ritsu exhaled and took control of his emotions before finally looking at Takano. "Takano-san...thank you for telling me, it means alot." A small smile adorned his lips but he made no sign to move of place. A part of him wanted to stay there with Takano forever and tell him that he loved him, and yet another reminded him that he was only a mere human. "You know, if this were a normal conversation, I'd hug you right now for support." The teen admitted, laughing dryly.

"Do it."

Ritsu shot a look at Takano, asking silently if he was serious.

"Do it, I don't mind. I've lived for a long time." His answer was solemn. Before Ritsu could ask more, he cut him off. "Hey, are you free tonight?" He asked, looking at the blue sky; it seemed so peaceful...

"What?" The brunette asked, raising en eyebrow. "Why the sudden change in topic? You just said you-"

"Are you free or not?" The youkai repeated, louder this time.

"...Yes, I think so. Why?" Ritsu glanced up, mesmerized by the beauty of Takano's face. A heartbreaking feeling invaded his mind. Takano wasn't a human nor a youkai...he was just...

"Tonight there's a festival that the forest spirits do to imitate human festivals, and I was wondering if you'd come with me."

"Eh?"

"Don't 'eh' me! I'm asking you to come with me to a festival as a date, Oda!"

"...Eh?"

* * *

><p><strong>Short chapter is short. 8|<strong>

**So yeah, happy birthday to me; I am still not legal enough to but beer or tequila, though...ONE MORE YEAR AND I CAN!**

**I wrote this chapter on two days since school's getting the best of me (I failed computational logic and I'm forced to go to a regulatory course now), so I have no time -?-**

**Eniweis, I hope you liked it! (:**

**Gimme reviews as presents!**


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